The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    Benefits of soothing music following open-heart surgery

    musicResearchers from Orebro University, in Sweden studied the effect of bed rest + music on relaxation in patients 1 day after heart surgery.

    First, the details.

    • 40 patients undergoing open coronary artery bypass grafting and/or aortic valve replacement surgery were randomly assigned to a treatment group.
      • Music listening during bed rest
      • Bed rest only

    And, the results.

    • In the music group, levels of oxytocin increased significantly in contrast to the bed rest only group, which experienced decreasing values.
      • Increasing oxytocin blood levels are associated with a better ability to cope with stress.
    • Subjective relaxation levels increased significantly more in the music group.
    • There was no difference between groups in blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygenation of the blood.

    The bottom line?
    What’s interesting about this study is, as the authors state, the causal relation between relaxation and the underlying physical changes (increase in oxytocin).

    11/2/09 20:46 JR

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